writing progress notes

Nursing Students Student Assist

Published

Hello & help

writing progress notes, well having a little/ no big problem getting through this stage of nursing. Can any of my

colleagues help me out?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

What semester are you? What are you having trouble with?

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Glad to hear from an experience person. Having trouble writing good progress notes.

Your help would be greatly appreciated

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

do you mean nurses notes? What are you having trouble with? what context? Are you in school? Are you in the US?

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Hi,

Not in school, employed as a LPN, content is writing a solid nursing progress note, and not sounding like a summary. Any suggestions?

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Not clear what you're really asking. What's the matter with "a summary," anyway? Does that mean something that I don't understand?

Is this for a note for a shift, a monthly note (like for a SNF), or ... ?

One of the very best compliments I ever rec'd from a physician was that he loved my documentation because he could really see what the patient looked like by reading it (bless you, John Mehigan, vascular surgeon, wherever you are). That is what you are aiming for.

The best way to think about nursing documentation is to think first about what medical records are used for. Quick! How many things can you think of?

1) Communications between staffers and disciplines

2) Legal documentation of events, assessment, and care

3) Supporting billing and insurance reimbursement (and that becomes your paycheck)

4) Clinical research

5) Education

6) Quality improvement/risk management

Gold star if you can think of some more!

The point is that you have to keep a lot more in mind when you write your notes and document your meds. All of those folks will be reading them sometime and counting on you to be accurate and descriptive. If your nursing documentation class had that in mind, by all means, take it to heart and use it every day. If it didn't, consider a creative writing class that teaches you how to see beyond the obvious and how to use good English to describe it for the reader. I can tell you at least one excellent doc, a lot of bean counters, medical and nursing researchers and academics, and many lawyers and nurse legal consultants will appreciate that.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

http://www.cno.org/Global/docs/prac/41001_documentation.pdf

Nursing Center - CE Article

VickyRN Asst. Admin Hand-off is the provision of verbal and/ or written

information from one primary health care provider to another so that pertinent care, treatment, or service needs as well as the patient’s current condition and

any recent or anticipated changes are accurately communicated.

SBAR is an acronym for situation, background, assessment, and recommendation.

Situation: Identify the patient and who is involved. Identify the problem/diagnosis, recent changes.

Background: Review of systems, pertinent medical history (allergies, code status, chronic diseases, and disability), safety/ cultural issues, precautions, labs, medications, mobility status, mental status, next of kin, equipment, tubes, drains, medications, IVs

Assessment: Plan of care, summary of current condition, catheters, drains, lines, tubes, treatments.

Recommendations: Pending tests, suggestions or requests, physicians’ orders, what is to happen, where, when, and how, to-do items, anticipated changes, and outstanding issues.

paperclip.png Attached Files

Assessment, Nursing Process, Charting
Up Vote Up Vote ×

Thank you very much! Assessment, Nursing Process, Charting is great web site for nurse students and novice nurses!!!!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment